Quebec coroner's inquiry into murder-suicide of Montreal family opens
MONTREAL — As Quebec police investigated the suicide of a man with prior arrests for domestic violence, authorities didn't immediately think to check on his wife and two children, who were later found dead, a coroner's inquiry heard Monday. The inquiry into the December 2019 killings of Dahia Khellaf, 42, and her sons, Adam, 4, and Aksil, 2, began Monday inside the courthouse in Joliette, Que. The three were strangled by Nabil Yssaad, 46, who took his own life by leaping from a hospital window i A coroner's inquiry into the murder-suicide of a Montreal family in 2019 has begun into the December 2019 killings of Dahia Khellaf, 42, and her sons, Adam, 4, and Aksil, 2, who were strangled by Nabil Yssaad, who had prior arrests for domestic violence. The couple was separated at the time, and Kellaf was in the process of divorcing her husband. The coroner's report in July 2022 criticised prosecutors and a judge involved in the case, stating that more could have been done to protect Khellaff and her children. The inquiry also heard that police were aware that Yissaad had driven to his wife's home with empty child seats in the back and had been subject to court orders that prohibited him from being in her presence. New facts were discovered following the report, leading to an inquiry into new investigation into the case.
Published : 2 years ago by The Canadian Press in General
MONTREAL — As Quebec police investigated the suicide of a man with prior arrests for domestic violence, authorities didn't immediately think to check on his wife and two children, who were later found dead, a coroner's inquiry heard Monday.
The inquiry into the December 2019 killings of Dahia Khellaf, 42, and her sons, Adam, 4, and Aksil, 2, began Monday inside the courthouse in Joliette, Que.
The three were strangled by Nabil Yssaad, 46, who took his own life by leaping from a hospital window in Joliette a day before the three bodies were found in their home, about 60 kilometres away in Montreal's east end.
The couple was separated at the time, and Khellaf was in the process of divorcing her husband.
In July 2022, coroner Alain Manseau wrote a report that was highly critical of prosecutors and a judge involved in the case, saying more could have been done to protect Khellaf and her children.
According to Manseau's report, Quebec prosecutors dropped four charges against Yssaad — including assaulting and threatening Khellaf — after he agreed to sign a peace bond five days before the killings.
The bond barred Yssaad from contacting Khellaf or being within 100 metres of her house, but there was no court-ordered treatment for mental-health issues.
Following the report, Quebec's chief coroner said new facts had come to light that required further investigation and an inquiry was ordered.
On Monday, coroner Andrée Kronström asked a Quebec provincial police investigator, Jonathan Perron, whether any concerns were raised about Khellaf and the children after Yssaad's body had been found on Dec. 10, 2019.
The coroner noted that police were aware Yssaad had driven to Joliette in his wife's vehicle with two empty child seats in the back. As well, they knew there were court orders that prohibited him from being in her presence.
After Yssaad's body was found, Perron said he asked Montreal police to go to the family's home to relay news of his death and confirm his identity, but the inquiry heard that the officers left when there was no answer at the Montreal-area home.
"When I heard from Montreal police … that there were no lights, no response, I started to have some doubts," Perron said. But he said officers are often dispatched to announce deaths and don't systematically enter a home when there's no answer.
Perron said he asked Montreal police to return the next morning, Dec. 11, 2019, and break down the door if there was no response.
"It was very quick," he said. "Thirty minutes later, they said they'd found the three bodies inside."
Asked if in retrospect, the welfare of the family should also be considered, the provincial police officer agreed.
"We should assure the well-being of the immediate family," Perron said.
Perron said Yssaad had no ties to the Joliette hospital or the city, aside from an acquaintance who lived in Notre-Dame-des-Prairies, a town nearby. Investigators believe he chose the building because it was the tallest in the vicinity.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 23, 2023.
Note to readers: This is a corrected story. A previous version said Yssaad had died at a hospital south of Montreal.
Topics: Crime, Canada, Quebec, Montreal, Murder